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QUIZZES/
SURVEYS:
Enhancements
Fall 2006
New
Question Types Fall 2005
Quicker
Quiz Creation
Timed
Exams
Editing
My Quiz After Deployment
Getting
Anonymous Feedback
Instructor
Manual
Question
Completion Status
Randomize
Multiple Choice Answers
Retaking
Quizzes/ Surveys
Quicker Quiz Creation
Q:
Creating quizzes / surveys through the Blackboard interface is rather
tedious and time consuming. Isn't there a faster way?
A: You can purchase an inexpensive desktop copy of a
Blackboard-compatible quiz generator such as Respondus
or Questionmark,
or you can create quizzes / surveys off-line in a text editor (or in a word
processing program, saving them as plain text) and upload them to
Blackboard. This later choice is a bit more labor-intensive, but it is
free. Instructions follow.
Overview
Instructors
may import files containing questions into an Assessment. After selecting
the Upload Questions question type on the Test Canvas the Upload Question
page appears.
The
questions in the uploaded file must match a specific file structure, which
is explained below. The file may include Essay, Ordering, Matching, Fill in
the Blank, Multiple Choice, Multiple Answer and True/False questions, or
any combination of these.
When
questions are imported they automatically default to the point value set in
Creation Settings. If a default value has not been chosen in Creation
Settings questions will automatically have a point value of ‘0’ and
Instructors must enter a point value for each question.
Note: Files with questions may be imported into
Pools and Surveys. Survey question that are imported may not include
correct and incorrect answers.
Find
the Upload Questions Page
Follow
the steps below to open the Upload Questions page.
Step
1 Select Test
Manager in the Assessment area of the Control Panel.
Step
2 Click Modify
next to an existing Test.
OR
Step
1 Select Add
Test, complete the Add Test page and select Submit.
Step
2 Select Upload
Questions in the Add Question: drop-down list and click Go.
The
upload page looks like this:
Function
Click Browse
and locate the file that is to be uploaded to this Assessment. All of the
questions in this file will be added to the Assessment. Instructors may not
choose specific questions within a file to be uploaded.
Point
Value
Setting a default point value for uploaded questions must be done before
the questions are uploaded from Test Creation Settings. If a default point
value is not set before questions are uploaded, then Instructors must go
into each question and set a point value. If a point value is not set
before the Assessment is deployed the questions will default to a 0 point
value.
Tips
and Tricks
The
following information is important to note when importing Assessment
questions:
- Once uploaded, questions
will function and can be manipulated like other questions created
within the Assessment.
- If there is an error in a
question within a file, only the question with an error will fail to
upload. Questions without errors will upload successfully.
- The system does not check
for duplicate questions. It is up to the Instructor to manage this
aspect of the Assessment questions.
File
Structure
Questions
in the file must conform to a specific structure in order to be uploaded to
an Assessment successfully. The image below is a sample of how each type of
question must be formatted in the file. Each field in the file is separated
by a tab.
Multiple Choice
questions are structured as follows:
‘MC’
tab <question text> (tab <answer text> tab ‘correct’ or
‘incorrect’)
- Text within () may be
repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Multiple Choice
question. The maximum number of answers is 20.
Multiple
Answer questions are structured as follows:
‘MA’
tab <question text> (tab <answer text> tab ‘correct’ or
‘incorrect’)
- Text within () may be
repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Multiple Answer
question. The maximum number of answers is 20.
True/False
questions are structured as follows:
‘TF’
tab <question text> tab ‘true’ or ‘false’
Essay
questions are structured as follows:
‘ESS’
tab <question text> tab [<rubric text>]
- Text within [ ] is
optional. The Instructor may choose to add a sample essay question or
leave this blank.
Ordering
questions are structured as follows:
‘ORD’
tab <question text> (tab <answer text>)
- Text within ( ) may be
repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Ordering
question. The maximum number of answers is 20.
- The order entered in the
file is the correct order. The system will randomly order the answers.
Matching
questions are structured as follows:
‘MAT’
tab <question text> (tab <answer text> tab <matching
text>)
- Text within ( ) may be
repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Matching
question. The maximum number of answers is 20.
- The system will randomly
order the answers and their question.
Fill
in the Blank questions are structured as follows:
‘FIB’
tab <question text> (tab <answer text>)
- Text within () may be
repeated for each of the answers that are part of the Fill in the
Blank question. The maximum number of answers is 20.
© 2003 Blackboard Inc.
Timed Exams
Q:
Can tests administered via Blackboard be timed; i.e., students are
allowed a specified time to complete the test once they have begun?
A: Yes, there are two ways to administer timed tests
through Blackboard. If you do not wish to create the test in Blackboard
through the Assessment feature, preferring to have students download a Word
document and then upload their responses, read this pdf document.
Another route is to create the test through the assessment
feature. One of the options you will be presented with when you deploy the
test through a content area is to set the timer.
If
the assessment is timed, the students will see a message when they begin
the quiz:
This
survey has a () hour () minute time limit.The elapsed time appears at the
top right of the windowr. A 1 minute warning will be displayed.
If
a student exceeds the time limit, Blackboard accepts the submission (unless
you use a special script that is available to force
submission), but notes the overage on the receipt that is displayed
to the student:
Time Elapsed: 1 hour, 5 minutes and 30 seconds out of 1 hour allowed.
An exclamation mark
is produced in the gradebook for that assessment item. When you view the
student's assessment results, you will see the same message regarding the
time that the student saw. The assessment must be graded manually.
Force Submission of Blackboard Assessments at
Time-up
From the Test
Manager, click “Add Test”. Give it a name and description.
In the instructions
section, make sure you select HTML below the text box. Do not use the
Visual Text Box Editor. (To turn off the VTBE, under
the My Blackboard tab, on the left column, select Personal Information from
the module labeled Tools.) Paste the following in the text box:
<P>insert your
instructions here</P>
<SCRIPT
language=javascript src="/webapps/assessment/counter_endtime.js"
type=text/javascript></SCRIPT>
Type your
instructions where it says "insert your instructions here"
between <P> and </P>
Click OK. Finish
creating the test.
In the “Modify the
Test Options” section, just make sure you set the timer.
Ten-Second Issue
This script is
written to cause the test to submit 10 seconds before the actual time is
up, to allow time for the submission process -- though you will encounter
some cases where it takes longer than 10 seconds to submit, resulting in a
"Needs Grading" message. I would suggest have students use Durham
University's Browser Tester building block or something similar, as it has
an Alert Test to make sure the 1 minute warning will appears. Sometimes a
test will go minutes over the time limit because the student did not see or
click away the alert -- but they cannot work on the test during this time
either.
We suggest you
include this message to students:
If
you do not submit the test at least 10 seconds before the time is up, the
test will submit automatically. So if the test has a 60 minute time limit,
you actually only have 59 minutes, 50 seconds to complete the test, as the
time it takes to complete the submission process, which can take up to 10
seconds, is figured in the time.
The test will not
submit automatically until student clicks away the 1-minute warning pop-up,
though the timer keeps ticking -- so if the student waits 2 minute to click
the pop-up, the test will show that the student went 1 minute overtime.
However, the student cannot continue working on the test while the pop-up
is displayed -- nor after it has been clicked away, if the time limit has
elapsed.
Editing My Quiz After
Deployment
Q:
There are some typos in my quiz that I'd like to correct, but I have
already made it available and some students have taken it. Can I fix them?
A: Blackboard now allows instructors to make come changes
to a quiz once it has been deployed, without erasing the scores of students
who have already taken it. To make such changes, locate the
quiz through the Control Panel in whichever content area you have
placed. Click the Modify button, then click the Modify the test link.
You will be present with this warning:
You are about to modify an assessment that students have
already taken. Only textual changes to existing fields are allowed, for
example to correct a typo or reword a confusing question. Note that after
you make textual changes, existing assessment attempts (tests that students
have already taken) will show the new text, not the original text.
- Do not change
the number of points for a question.
- Do not add or
remove questions.
- Do not add or
remove answers or feedback.
- Do not change
settings.
- Do not change
attached files
If you need to make any changes other than textual changes,
you should create a new assessment. Any changes other than textual changes
to existing fields will invalidate existing assessment attempts and could
corrupt the entire assessment and its Gradebook entries.
Click the Continue button at the bottom, then, when presented with the
Test Canvas, click the Modify button.
Getting Anonymous
Feedback
Q:
Is there a way I can ask the students to evaluate the course so far and
have them respond anonymously?
A:
Yes. The Survey feature handles just such needs.
·
Go
to the Control Panel and select "Survey Manager" under the
"Assessment" heading.
·
Choose
"Add Survey."
·
Follow
the instructions provided to enter basic information about the survey
(name, directions, etc.) and individual questions.
·
Student
responses to the online survey will be anonymous. You will be able to tell
only if a student took the survey or not. The answers will be listed
anonymously when you click on the name of the survey in your online
Gradebook.
·
Student
also can be allowed to respond anonymously to threads in the Discussion
Board, but that format does not lend itself so readily to questionnaires.
Retaking Quizzes/
Surveys
Q:
One of my students was taking a survey, but lost his data when he
re-sized the browser window. He tried to start over, but the system would
not let him. It remembered that he had tried to take the survey before, but
didn't remember any of his answers! Is there any way to let him take the
survey over?
A:
The instructor has the option of clearing the survey or quiz results of a
student by clicking on the Clear Attempt button in the grade book (click on
the student's actual quiz grade or whatever symbol may appear where the
grade should be, then click the View button to access the Clear
Attempt button). This is done on a student by student basis.
New Assessment
Question Types Fall 2005
Q:
Are there any new options for question types ?
A:
Yes. As of fall 2005, Blackboar dhas 10 new question types. Additionally,
when creating Multiple Choice questions, instructors may select the option,
Show Answers in Random Order.
When creating a test, one must first make this option availablel in Creation Settings.
Below
are some videos (with Transcript option) to show you how to create the new
types of questions.
Patrick Crispen's CSULB Training Movies
This temporary,
working index contains high media training movies designed for the faculty
and staff of the California State University, Long Beach.
Make sure your audio is on, as the movies are accompanied with spoken
instructions.
How to Create
Calculated Formula Questions [04:13]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create
Calculated Numeric Questions [02:28]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create
Either/Or Questions [02:35]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create File
Response Questions [02:47]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create Fill
in Multiple Blanks Questions [04:00]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create Hot
Spot Questions [04:35]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create a
Jumbled Sentence Question [04:02]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create
Opinion Scale/Likert Questions [02:31]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create Quiz
Bowl Questions [04:36]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
How to Create Short
Answer Questions [03:11]
Movie | Captioned Movie | Transcript
Question Completion
Status
Q:How can students keep track of their progress while
taking a test in Blackboard?
A: The Questions
Status Indicator is a tool to provide users with a quick up-to-date look at
their progress (complete or incomplete questions) in an assessment at all
times. The Save button next to each question provides a visual reminder to
save your progress periodically.
Completion status of
assessment questions is displayed at the top of the page when taking an
assessment.
The status of which
questions have been answered is displayed at the top of the page, just
below the Instructions.
When answering a
question and moving on to the next question in a question-by-question
assessment, the status box will be updated on the next page to show that
the previous question was answered. If you do not answer a question and
move on to the next page in a question-byquestion assessment, the status
box will show on the next page that the previous question was not answered.
Navigate between questions by clicking on the question number in the status
indicator.
When taking an
all-at-once assessment (an assessment where the questions all appear on the
same page), use a Save button to the right of each question to save a
specific question without scrolling to the bottom of the page to save.
Saving either a single question or all of the questions that have been
answered (with the Save button at the bottom of the page) changes the
status indicator to show which questions have been completed.
Assessment Enancements
Fall 2006
(See also Gradebook
Enhancements Fall 2006)
Multiple Attempts
Assessments may now be set to allow unlimited attempts or a specific number
of attempts. The Gradebook displays all of the attempts. The Gradebook item
is scored based on grading option: last attempt, first attempt, highest
score, lowest score, or average of scores. Additionally, an Override field
has been included so that the instructor can override the score independent
of any attempts.
Now that all attempts are visible in the Gradebook, the clearing options
have been enhanced as well. The instructor may choose to clear (or delete)
the last attempt, first attempt, highest attempt, lowest attempt, or all
attempts within a specified date range. This action may be performed by
item (for all students at once) or by user (for a specific user).
Self-Assessment Options
The deployment of tests has been enhanced to permit Self-Assessment in two
forms: allow the instructor and student to view the grade, or only allow
the student to view the grade. In each case, the grade is not included in
the final score for the student.
When deploying a test in a course, the instructor should uncheck the option
called Include this test in Gradebook score calculations to allow students
to take the test without affecting their overall score. Both the instructor
and the student will still be able to review the results of the test. This
option was previously only available through the Gradebook but is now also
available in the course content area when deploying a test.
The second self-assessment option, called Hide the score of this test from
the Gradebook will allow the student to take the test without displaying
the results to the instructor.
Test and Survey Import/Export
The Test and Survey Managers have been enhanced to allow for importing and
exporting, much like the Pool Manager in Release 6, to facilitate re-use.
Users can export the test or survey package to their local computers and,
if Content Collection integration is on, can also select to export to their
Content Collection in the Blackboard Content System.
The ability to export and import tests and surveys assists with content
reuse and collaboration. When a test (or survey) is created, creation
settings are determined, questions and answers are developed, and metadata
is associated. Now, all of that information can be reused simply by exporting
the entire test to the local computer or to the Content Collection, and
then importing it into another course’s Test or Survey Manager. Once the
test or survey has been imported, any modifications may be made to
customize it for the
other course.
Additionally, users can export to Content Collection, further facilitating
collaboration. Storing the Test or Survey package in the Content Collection
allows the user to share the package with others or make the package
discoverable in both the Content Collection Search and the Learning Objects
Catalog.
Extra Credit
When creating a test, questions may now be marked as extra credit only.
This means that the points possible for the entire test will not include
the points possible for that question. If the question is answered
correctly, the question points will be added to the points correct, but if
the question is answered incorrectly, there is no score penalty.
Customized Feedback
Feedback options were previously organized into four groups: score only,
score + detailed results, all of the above + correct answers, and all of
the above + detailed results, all of the above + feedback. These options
have been ungrouped so that users may select any combination of the score,
submitted answers, correct answers and feedback to be displayed to the
student at the end of an assessment.
Enhanced Submission Reports
The submission report for assessments now includes the following user
information: First Name, Last Name, Course Name, Username, Course ID, name
of the Assessment, and date/time of submission. This may be used as
verification by the student that they have indeed submitted the assessment.
Some instructors may require students to print this as a permanent record
of the activity.
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